Field
Embodiments disclosed herein generally relate to electrical connectors for electronic devices, and more particularly to hermetic electrical connectors used in hard disk drives.
Description of the Related Art
A hard disk drive (HDD) is a non-volatile storage device that is housed in a protective enclosure and stores digitally encoded data on one or more magnetic media, such as magnetic disks. When an HDD is in operation, each magnetic disk is rapidly rotated by a spindle system. Data is read from and written to the magnetic disk using a read/write head that is positioned over a specific location of the magnetic disk by an actuator.
A read/write head uses a magnetic field to read data from and write data to the surface of the magnetic disk. Write heads make use of the electricity flowing through a coil, which produces a magnetic field. Electrical pulses are sent to the write head, with different patterns of positive and negative currents. The current in the coil of the write head induces a magnetic field across the gap between the head and the magnetic disk, which in turn magnetizes a small area on the recording disk.
There are various benefits to operating an HDD in helium ambient, because the density of helium gas is one seventh that of air. For example, operating an HDD in helium reduces the drag force acting on the spinning disk stack and the mechanical power used by the disk spindle motor. Further, operating in helium gas reduces flutter of the disks and the suspension, allowing for disks to be placed closer together and increasing the areal density by enabling a smaller, narrower data track pitch. The lower shear forces and more efficient thermal conduction of helium also mean the HDD will run cooler and will emit less acoustic noise. The reliability of the HDD is also increased due to low humidity, less sensitivity to altitude and external pressure variations, and the absence of corrosive gases or contaminants. However, known devices and methods for sealing an HDD in helium result in a marked increase in the cost of the HDD, and high-speed electrical transmission may be sacrificed in order to improve sealing of the HDD with respect to helium gas.
Therefore, there is a need in the art for an improved apparatus for sealing an HDD with helium gas inside.